McCormick Grill Mates® Grill Ambassadors Party

I must say, I love crowdtap! I had gotten a free pair of shorts from Old Navy, and then I was selected for the McCormick Grill Mates® Grill Ambassadors Party. The party pack I received in the mail had lots of yummy goodies! There is still so much summer left, and grilling is such a fun way to get friends and family involved together.

1) Molasses Bacon Seasoning

2) Brown Sugar Bourbon BBQ Sauce

3) Montreal Steak Seasoning

3) Spiced Brandy & Herb Marinade

5) Slow & Low Memphis Bit BBQ Rub

We tried each one of these and we were truly impressed by them all. I like to think of this as my sweet and smoky flavor arsenal. The flavors are unique and full.

The molasses bacon has become a multipurpose spice in my kitchen. Sprinkle some on top of your eggs, or on a baked potato to kick the flavor up a notch! I cooked some Hake fillets in the stove top, in coconut oil, sprinkled with the spice and it was out of this world!

Taking this spice to the grill, we enjoyed boneless skinless chicken breast, rubbed lightly with a BBQ spice rub, topped with diced peaches that were sprinkled with the Molasses Bacon Seasoning. Oh My Yum ! :)

Very tasty, and visually appealing too!

The Brown Sugar Bourbon BBQ sauce is in a class of its own. The sauce is SO thick, no worries with wasting half the bottle from it not sticking to the meat when you are trying to cook! The bottle touts that this is both a BBQ sauce and a rub in one, which is pretty impressive. We cooked some chicken tenders in grill packets on the grill with the sauce. The flavor balance was perfect, just enough flavor but not over powering!

I used both the BBQ sauce and the Montreal Steak Seasoning to make these Turkey Burgers. Easy to make and tasty to boot. 1 pound lean ground turkey, 1 tbs Montreal steak seasoning, 1 tsp diced onion, 1/4 cup bread crumbs. Mix together and form patties, Brush on BBQ sauce. Grill and enjoy!

The biggest surprise was the awesome flavor that was provided by the Spiced Brandy and Herb Marinade. The package describes the flavor as  having "the distinctive blend of herbs and warm spices such as cinnamon and ginger with a hint of brandy flavor" :D. I happened to be out of regular vinegar like the marinade recipe calls for so I subbed in some pomegranate infused red wine vinegar. Ed said these were the best chicken legs he had EVER had. That is saying something!

Last, but certainly not least, is the Slow & Low Memphis Pit BBQ Rub. I can say that I like ribs, but this rub takes them to a WHOLE new level. I was afraid that the spice blend was going to be too overwhelming and I am so glad that I was wrong. Honestly, I don't know that I will ever cook ribs again without this blend. It is super easy to use, just rub it on the ribs, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a few hours. The juices release from the meat and combine with the spices to make an amazing crust on on the ribs. Holy Yum. I really want to make more, just reliving the experience!

For more great grilling ideas, stop by the GrillMates facebook page. They share new recipes, and are even currently offering free ringtones!



I was sent this awesome sampler pack to review from CrowdTap and McCormick GrillMates. However all opinions expressed in this post are my own, honest opinions. I was not given any additional compensation for my opinions.

Review: Beanfields Crispylicious Bean & Rice Chips

Stop what you are thinking, unless you are thinking amazing things. :D When I applied for this product review for Beanfields Bean & Rice Chips I was excited and nervous at the same time.  Think about it. A healthier snack chip. There are all kinds of ways this could go wrong. After review the ingredients, mainly beans, rice and oils, my interest was piqued and I was so excited to get my sampler box in the mail. DELICIOUS!

Beanfields is a family owned, values-based company. They love them some beans.All of their chips are Corn Free, Gluten Free and do not include GMO (genetically modified) ingredients. Beanfields believes that great taste, high nutrition and allergen free can and should co-exist. A servings of these chips packs 4 grams of fiber and 4 grams of complete protein.

1 serving

In my sample pack, I was lucky enough to receive the following varieties to samples:

Naturally Unsalted

Sea Salt

Sea Salt & Pepper

Pico de Gallo

Vegan Nacho

I shared the chips with some of my friends and co workers to get their opinion of them as well. All of the chips were super tasty and filling. They were crunchy, flavorful, and satisfying. The Pico de Gallo we my and my friend Stacy's favorite, while our hubby's liked the Nacho ones best.  For those of you watching your sodium, the Naturally Unsalted would be a great option for you! One serving only has 5 mg of sodium!!! My boss and coworker both enjoyed the Unsalted variety.The other varieties range from 140-190 mg (see pics below).

click for larger view

click for larger view

All varieties are 4 Points+ Per Serving :)

I was a big fan of the texture of the chips. They are not greasy and you can see the detail below:

These chips are really delicious and I am anxious to get some more in the mail.I love that they sell these great snacks in two sized bags, 1.5 oz and 6 oz. The bags in the above picture of the varieties are the 6 oz size. The prices are reasonable, averaging about $1.19-$1.49 for a 1.5 oz bag and $2.99-$3.99 for the 6 oz bags. You can look for a store that sells them locally near you, or if you live in an area similar to where I live and the stores do not carry this brand you have 3 options :D

1)  Beanfields is kind enough to provide a form on their website that you can take to your local grocer, requesting that start carrying the product

2) You can order them online from their website

3) Shop from Amazon!

I thoroughly enjoyed my samples and Beanfields has changed my mind on what chips should be. These quality and wholesome chips are farmed and made in the USA.  I learned a lot while researching this product and sampling them. Some of my favorite facts include:

Beans are the only food listed twice on the USDA Food plate, both as a vegetable and as a protein
Beans take less water to grow, per pound, than any other protein source




I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Squash Pudding {Secret Recipe Club}

It is unbelievable that it is June already! That means it is time for another Secret Recipe Club Post! This is such a great group of bloggers where each month we are secretly assigned another blogger from our group, so that we can visit their blog and recreate one of their recipes! This month, I had the pleasure of browsing Julie's blog Little Bit of Everything She participates in all sorts of neat challenge groups, and that was fun to read about. I have about 6 of her other recipes bookmarked to try later :) I eventually decided I needed to make her Squash Pudding. I wasn't really sure what size pan to use, so I baked mine in 2 8x8'sThank you for allowing me over to your blog Julie! I look forward to trying more of your recipes soon!


Ingredients:
2 3/4 lb yellow squash, peeled and sliced
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup white flour
1 1tsp vanilla
1/4 + 1/8 cup brown sugar blend
sprinkle of cinnamon and allspice


Preheat oven to 350 Spray glass baking dish (2- 8x8 or 1 9x13) with cooking spray. Boil squash until tender and drain well ( I don't think I drained mine well enough as it never really set, but this could be the correct consistency) . In your blender or food processor, combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour in to prepared backing dish and bake for 30-45 minutes or until edges are brown.

This turned out quite yummy, though I wasn't sure of what the final consistency should have been. It was pudding-ish though :) I think I will try and remake this again in the future, better draining the squash and reducing some of the sweetener,  but over all i was impressed I could turn veggies in to something this unique :)

Serves 8 @ 3PPV
Serves 6 @ 4 PPV
Serves 4 @ 5 PPV

Check out the linky below for more great Secret Recipe Club posts!!!




Linked at Fit and Fab Fridays

Savory Breakfast Bake

If you have been a reader for long, or if you visit my recipe index, you know that we are big fans of breakfast! This recipe is one that I came up with after Ed has a few sweet breakfasts back to back and I wanted to try something different. The blend of spices in this recipe is the perfect savory blend. If you scale the portions down this could be an awesome side dish! We had some leftover burger buns to use up, but you can use all light wheat bread if you prefer


Savory Breakfast Bake
Printable Recipe

3 burger buns, cubed
2 slices light wheat bread, cubed
1/3 cup milk
5 eggs
1/4 cup diced green onions
1/4 tsp thyme
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp minced onion
1/4 tsp garlic salt with parsley
1/4 cup 2% milk cheese shredded

Preheat oven to 375. Spray 9 inch pie pan with cooking spray Toss the bread cubes and spices together, beat the eggs and milk together.Combine the bread and egg mix and stir til coated Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until cooked through Serve and enjoy!

Serves 4 @ 5PPV

Serves 5@ 4 PPV

Serves 8 @ 3 PPV